Milne Bay Locally Managed Marine Areas

In June 2025 the Coral Sea Foundation and Sea Women of Melanesia (SWoM) conducted reef survey training operations at 4 sites within Milne Bay, with the permission of the Local Traditional Owners and the Milne Bay Provincial Administration. The objective of this training program was to enhance the reef survey skills of the Milne Bay SWoM team so that they could collect more effective monitoring data from the Locally Managed Marine Areas within the Bay, in support of community based management initiatives. We found high conservation value coral reef ecosystems at all 4 sites we surveyed, highlighting the marine biodiversity found in this eastern section of the Coral Triangle.

This video provides a summary of the reef structure and the underwater life we observed at each site, and quantitative estimates of the coral cover and benthic composition are available on the ReefCloud.Ai dashboard at
https://reefcloud.ai/dashboard/?x=150.60673&y=-10.36126&z=10.79890&level=2

We are honoured to be working with the Sea Women of Melanesia-PNG , the local Traditional Owners and the Provincial Administration to advance grassroots, Indigenous led marine conservation action here, supplemented by the modern technology of ReefCloud.Ai to rapidly analyse reef monitoring imagery.

This work supported by:
Ocean Community Empowerment and Nature Grants Programme - OCEAN
Australian Institute of Marine Science
Sall Family Foundation
Whitley Fund for Nature
PNG Marine Program
Steamships PNG
The Jock Clough Marine Foundation

www.coralseafoundation.net

#coralseafoundation #coral #coralreef #coraltriangle #biodiversity #seawomenofmelanesia #papuanewguinea???????? #marineconservation #marinescience